


Two Apart, Three Together

by Scarletivory



Category: Pocket Monsters: Sword & Shield | Pokemon Sword & Shield Versions
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, Doctor/Patient, Fluff and Angst, Getting Together, I am aware Leon's job does not actually exist, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Implied/Referenced Homophobia, M/M, Modern AU, Sickfic, Slow Burn, Slow Romance, work with me here
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-12
Updated: 2020-11-25
Packaged: 2021-03-10 06:15:13
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 3
Words: 6,355
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27529834
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Scarletivory/pseuds/Scarletivory
Summary: Leon liked to think he was a pretty sensible guy. Key word, liked—some of his colleagues would say otherwise. However, it seemed his imperative goofball nature was what landed him this job, or so Sonia claimed.“We need a guy who isn’t so serious, someone who can calm a normally neurotic mind."Boy was he in for so much more than he realized.
Relationships: Dande | Leon/Kibana | Raihan, Dande | Leon/Kibana | Raihan/Nezu | Piers, Dande | Leon/Nezu | Piers, Kibana | Raihan/Nezu | Piers
Comments: 3
Kudos: 29





	1. Prelude

**Author's Note:**

> Welcome along this journey. This fic was originally just going to be a small and simple sickfic, and now has become quite the full story. I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I'm enjoying writing it!

Leon liked to think he was a pretty sensible guy. Key word, liked—some of his colleagues would say otherwise. However, it seemed his imperative goofball nature was what landed him this job, or so Sonia claimed.

“We need a guy who isn’t so serious, someone who can calm a normally neurotic mind,” she explained. He was sitting around a table in a hospital break room; to his right was the doctor, Raihan, who would be placed on his new patients team, and Sonia, who sat across from them.

“That’s all well and good, but you haven’t even told me the patient's name yet, or where we’ll be staying.” It had been about two and a half years since Leon had graduated from university, and he only got this job position through Sonia and her grandmother’s good graces. He fumbled around in college for about a year, at a complete loss of what he wanted to do. Following the medical path like his best friend did seemed like a good choice at the time, but Sonia was made to be a doctor and follow her grandmother’s footsteps, Leon just wasn’t. After seeing her friend struggle, Sonia introduced him to this specific program run by her grandmother’s hospital, which needed a very specific set of skills he would have to study at university. He graduated with flying colors, and was now prepared to be what the hospital nicknamed ‘caretaker’. This patient would be his first ever, and he wouldn’t lie and say he wasn’t nervous.

“His name is Piers,” Sonia explained, and both Leon and Raihan’s jaws dropped down to the floor.

“THE Piers,” Raihan asked, slapping Leon’s jaw closed. They had known each other all of maybe 30 minutes, and he was already acting pretty friendly. Somehow Leon didn’t mind that, it aided his nervousness.

“Yes, THE Piers. I’m sure you both were curious why he stopped making music and fell off the face of the earth. He’s gotten sick, apparently something to do with high stress causing him to fall very sickly.” Sonia ruffled her papers, straightening them out to look down at all of her notes. “Now, we’ll be moving you two out to a small cottage in the countryside in Ireland, his home country. Raihan, you’ll be relocated to the nearest hospital. I’m sure they will give you other patients but remember that Piers is your primary reason for being relocated. The staff there will be reminded as well, he is your primary patient.”

Raihan nodded, crossing his legs and leaning forward on his hands, a grin stretching across his face. “I hear Piers is quite the nice looking man, I’m more than ecstatic to meet him.”

Sonia, being quick to the catch, smacked his head with her papers, knocking him back against the chair. “Be that as it may, you’ll have to watch the flirty attitude, Raihan. It seems Piers has become quite hard to get along with since getting sick. The entire purpose of him being put in this program is for him to relax. Since his disease is stress induced, the only way we see him recovering is by putting him in stress free situations. _Do not_ make this worse for him.”

Raihan, now rubbing his nose that just got smacked, nodded fervently to avoid getting hit again, but Leon casted his eyes downwards. “I can’t exactly blame him,” he said. “I mean, to go from touring the world and playing music to having to move out to the countryside to be cared for, I don’t think I would be all that happy either.”

“And that is precisely why we chose you for this job, Leon,” Sonia said as she shifted her attention from staring down Raihan to him. She only giggled at Leon’s clearly confused expression. “You have a gentle nature, and it’s impossible to look too hard into your words. Piers has a tendency to look for hidden meaning in everything people say, but the tone and meaning behind your words is always perfectly clear. It’s impossible to misconstrue anything you say. You also have a calming nature, like I said early, your peaceful disposition will help his neurotic tendencies. It might be hard to get his trust at first, but don’t give up right away. I’m sure you two will hit it off once he learns he can trust you.”

“But what about family?” Raihan asked before Leon could say anything, so instead of speaking, he thought very carefully about Sonia’s words. “Generally people placed in this program either don’t have much family to speak of, or have relatives who can’t or won't care for them.”

“Good question. It seems he doesn’t have much family to speak of, only a little sister named Marnie. His parents have both passed away, and he either doesn’t have or doesn’t know any distant family. Speaking of..” Sonia trailed off as she looked through her notes. “Marnie is apparently moving in with a friend who lives nearby where Piers will be staying, so you’ll likely meet her the first day you move in, Leon. She’s apparently very over protective of her brother and a tough nut to crack, so please make a good impression.”

Leon nodded, attempting to look over Sonia’s papers to see if there was a picture, hoping to attach a face to a name. “Anything I should know, like his likes and dislikes? Things I can do to make him feel more at home, or things I should avoid?”

“Hmm…” Sonia thought to herself for a moment. “He’s not really a picky eater, but he absolutely hates cooking, something he really shouldn’t have to do for himself in his condition anyway. I’ll have one of our nurses send you a list of some of his favorite foods and snacks, it would be smart to keep the kitchen stocked as much as possible. He doesn’t always have an appetite so it’s important that he has food available to him when he does. He’s generally a very quiet person, but he seems to appreciate every time the nurses start conversations with him, so I would suggest talking to him to get him to warm up to you.”

Leon followed along as best he could, taking all of Sonia’s information into account. Both she and Raihan had papers or clipboards, he felt like he should be taking notes himself, “And what about things he dislikes?”

“Don’t ever interrupt him when he’s working on or playing music, he’s made it quite clear that is when he spends time for himself, and that he is to never be interrupted.” Leon mentally filed that one away for later. To be able to hear Piers’ process and talent up close, and in a way personal, like that was a blessing in it of itself. He wouldn’t ruin it by attempting to talk to him anyway, but he would make sure he didn’t accidentally interrupt and upset him. “He very rarely falls asleep without the help of medication, but he needs as much rest as he can get. Believe me, if he manages to fall asleep on his own at any point in time, even for just a nap, and you wake him up he will go after your throat. Otherwise just be mindful what you say around him, he is your patient. Don’t make conversations about anything political or otherwise stressful, keep things professional.”

That little reminder had his lips turning down, but he shook it off. Sonia was right, it’s his job to take care of Piers, not become friends with him. Strictly professional, that's what this was going to be. Still, Leon is the kind of person to make friends with anyone and everyone, where would the lines blur here? He would have to be careful that he didn’t get too comfortable, getting too comfortable always led to saying the wrong thing, and this is supposed to be _strictly professional_. 

“Other than that, I think that's all we need from you at the moment.” Sonia’s bright and cheery voice snapped him out of his thoughts. There was no point in getting worried about fucking it up now when he hadn’t even started the job yet. “Raihan, let's you and I go over his medical records and conditions, and once we confirm any at home treatments you might need to do, we’ll send them your way, Leon.”

He nodded, standing and making his way out of the meeting room. His mind was thrumming with excitement and nervousness alike. This job was turning out to be a much bigger deal than he thought it would be, and he still felt like he didn’t know all the details like he should. A sigh escaped his lips, surely gaining him stares as he walked through the hospital’s halls. Someway or another, he was going to have to find a way to pull this off, even if he really wasn’t sure how.


	2. Lost Beginnings

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And thus the story begins!

It had to have been hours now, and at this point Leon had gone absolutely mental. He had to admit it to himself now, he’d gotten lost. And now he stood in front of the cottage, a suitcase in one hand and a flower bouquet in the other. He didn’t even know if Piers liked flowers, or if he would like these specific flowers. First day, and he’s already fucked this up.

Before he could stand and wallow in his own self deprecation in front of the front door much longer, the door swung open, and a young girl stepped out. The very first thing Leon noticed was her interesting hairstyle, with both the shaved part of her head and her two hair ponytails. She couldn’t have been older than sixteen, so Leon immediately assumed that this was the younger sister.

“You’re late, we’ve already got Piers moved in.” Her voice was completely deadpanned as she said this, like she lacked any major emotions. Ah, his assumption must have been correct.

“I apologize, I’m afraid I have quite a terrible sense of direction, and I have never been to the countryside or Ireland in general. You must be Marnie.” 

The girl nodded, and now Leon could officially put a face to a name. “The movers have already come and gone. We didn’ touch any of the boxes that had your name on ‘em, only had ‘em set down in your room.” She hopped down the handful of steps that lead up to the front door, and Leon absently noticed the quite large basket in her hands. “There’s a little grocery store in town close by, it's about a 20 minute walk from the cottage. I’m goin’ ta go get us a bunch of Piers’ favorite snacks and some things to make for dinner, in case he gets hungry.”

And with nothing but a little wave, she was off. Leon made a mental note to ask her to show him the way to that store, and turned his attention back to the front door. It was now or never, he had already made them wait long enough by getting lost. He heaved a sigh, then sucked in a big breath in preparation, before walking up the steps and making his way in.

The cottage inside was spacious enough, while still holding on to that countryside feel that Leon was expecting when Sonia first mentioned the place. It was all rather dark in color compared to the bright white of the outside walls, with dark wood panelling making up the floor and some of the inner walls. It was well kept up for a cottage, and in a way had some elements of a modern flare in all of its rustic glory. It was definitely the perfect getaway home for someone in need of a place more relaxing than not. Leon almost felt like he was the one on vacation, seeing as how quiet it all was.

Quiet, except for the sound of wind chimes further into the house. Marnie had said Piers was inside, but there were no sounds or signs of movement anywhere, making Leon instantly grow worried. He moved through the house as silently as he could, setting his suitcase and the flowers down right at the front door to attend to later. The last thing he needed on his list of _how badly can you fuck the first day up_ was to make the wrong first impression by scaring the person he’s supposed to spend the rest of god knows how long with.

He followed along the hallway that led from the front door to the living room of the house. It was well furnished, a soft white couch behind a wood coffee table and a tv facing it. Behind the living room sat a kitchen and a small dining room table, just big enough to fit a handful of people. He would have to inspect the kitchen later, see what tools were provided and what tools he would have to buy to cook for Piers. For now, his eyes scanned out to the wide open sliding doors just past the living room, and the form clad in all black laid across the porch in the sun.

In an instant Leon felt all the blood rush from his face. Great, just when he thought he really couldn’t fuck this up any more, he had taken too long to get here, and Piers had fainted while he was without care. Really, what a spectacular way to start things off, letting your patient faint on the porch while you’re taking three thousand years to find the house.

He was about to run over to the man, praying to any god that existed that he wasn’t too late, but Piers began to talk before his foot even stepped forward.

“I’m not dead, you nitwit, m’just resting here. I was cold, and it feels nice to rest in the sun.” Piers made no moves to turn to face him, in fact, Leon could swear that the man didn’t move at all. How he could even tell that Leon was behind him, let alone worried, was something that would forever remain a mystery to him.

He carefully took a step further, and winced at how the floor creaked under his weight. “Sorry for uh… worrying. The wooden floor can’t be all that comfortable though, maybe you’d like to move to the couch?”

Hearing this, Piers finally began to sit up. Long two toned hair fell and cascaded down his back, let loose and slightly knotted from being laid on and pressed against the floor. Pale sea-green eyes met his as he turned to look over his shoulder, and Leon felt all the air immediately leave his lungs at the gorgeous sight before him. Piers was quite pale, a bit lanky, and had dark circles that really made him question if he ever got any sleep, but there was something ethereal about him. He momentarily remembered a conversation that happened prior to this meeting, where Raihan warned him not to be taken aback by his looks, but that warning flew out of his head almost as soon as it entered. The way the sunlight caught behind his head almost made a halo around it, and Leon had to kick himself mental just to remember how to _breathe_.

“I’m sure the couch is plenty comfy, but m’used to sleeping on hard surfaces. This one is no different.” Gods, he could listen to Piers speak for hours, his voice like a lullaby hanging on every syllable, but the words he spoke snapped Leon back to reality. He frowned, and definitely didn’t miss the way Piers’ eyes took note of it.

“Even so… I think you deserve to rest somewhere a little more comfortable. I’m sure moving to a new home couldn’t have been a stress-less experience for you.” Something dark flashed across Piers’ eyes at something Leon just said, but as for what part of that sentence caused the reaction, it was too soon to say. It was gone almost as soon as it came, but it was something Leon wasn’t going to forget any time soon.

A scowl took its place, and Piers looked away at anything other than Leon, “I think I was doing jus’ fine on the floor, thanks.” There was something defensive about the way he quipped his sarcasm, his shoulders scrunched up to his ears was a clear sign that he was in distress. Okay, maybe first impressions weren’t his strong suit but there was sure to be a way to turn this around. Namely, changing the subject.

“Did you get all your stuff in okay? I saw Marnie as she was walking out the door, she said the movers had already come. I’m sorry I couldn’t help you get all your stuff unpacked, you see I have a really awful sense of direction and have never been to the countryside before let alone this country, I got terribly turned around trying to find the house and was too afraid to ask for directions so that’s why I.. was….. late..” He let his sentence trail off as he noticed Piers staring, and realizing he had fallen back into the oh so awkward habit of rambling to fill up space. He really could talk way too much, couldn’t he? After all his father’s endeavors to teach him to speak eloquently and to _not ramble_ , he still held onto the habit whenever the opportunity for it to happen arose.

He squirmed under Piers’ scrutinizing gaze, absolutely unable to tell exactly he was thinking as he looked at him. “Righttt well, I likely wouldn ‘ave let you help me unpack anyway. Most of my stuff is too delicate and too precious to be touched by someone else, someone I don’t trust a’least.”

The admission hit him right in the chest. Surely he should’ve expected it, he hardly knows the guy, but to be told right out that he’s not trusted is a first for him. He remembers being bombarded by people when he would attend any sort of social gathering or company affair, girls falling at his feet telling him that he was so easy to trust. A hopeless flattery to be sure, trying to tell the big strong man that they felt safe in his arms to hopefully stroke his ego. It never worked, he never felt like he provided anything for those girls other than being a pretty face with big muscles that tickled all their fantasies. This was different, Piers had just so openly admitted he didn’t trust him. He was shut down before he could even begin to ask for a chance.

Still, something itched at him, in the back of his mind. Piers didn’t necessarily say that with malice, he more so stated it as a fact. It resonated something within his head. It wasn’t that he had done anything to make himself untrustworthy, Piers just knows nothing about him, doesn’t know that Leon is someone who would handle his things with care. That doesn’t mean that he would hold on to that belief forever. It means that Piers’ trust is something to be earned, rather than being thrown at his feet. It meant getting to know him more, at least on some level of friendliness, and Leon was ever one to rise to a challenge.

“Right uh... of course, I’d imagine a musician’s belongings can be very fragile and um… personal.” _Eloquently spoken there._ “Are you hungry? When Marnie gets back I can start cooking us something to ea-”

His mouth snapped shut when Piers put his hand up, and he met his eyes as he waited for him to speak. “You… ya don’ need to try so hard to be friendly with me. We both know that the two of us are jus’ here because we have ta be. M’sure you’re a fan of my music, and I know it’s probably a dream come true to meet me in person like this, but… but I’m not here to make friends, I’m here ‘cause I had no choice.” His head fell as he looked down at the floor, and those shoulders hunched right back up. “I don’t want to be treated like I’m somethin’ fragile, or like I’m somethin’ high on a pedestal that’s at risk of breaking if I fall. So don’t.. Don’t treat me like an idol, or like I’m made of glass.”

The asservation was given with such pain behind each and every word that Leon was momentarily stunned. What could possibly have happened to this man to make him feel like he had to keep his defenses so high, that everyone would only look at him like he was something meant to break. He shook it off quickly though, and his brows furrowed in some new kind of determination. There was no way he was going to let this man think he was only here because he had to be.

“What if I want to though?” was the question that came out, and if it wouldn’t make him look like less of a fool, Leon would have smacked himself right then and there for his lack of good word choice.

“I- m’sorry, what?”

 _Fix this you moron, forget professionalism_. “What if I want to treat you friendly? You say that I’m only here because I’m forced to be, but just because this is my job that doesn’t mean that I feel obligated to be nice to you. I might be here because I’ve been told to, and yes I am a fan of your music, but I was… excited, that maybe I could make a friend. I already stopped looking at you as some popular idol, because I’m not here to be a fan of your music. I’m here to make sure that you get the rest you need to recover, and what’s wrong with making a friend along the way?”

The look he was given was completely unreadable, but he could see the squint in Piers’ eyes as he stared. It made him squirm on the spot, but Leon refused to break eye contact. He wouldn’t back down on this one, even though he hardly knew the man before him, he needed him to know he at least deserved a friend. And finally, after a staring contest that felt like it lasted for ages, Piers opened his mouth to speak, and Leon braced himself in anticipation.

“Look I-”

“I’m back!” Marnie shouted from in the doorway, completely shattered whatever moment had built up between the two, causing Leon to jump and Piers to shake his head. A sigh broke him out of his scared stupor of the shout, only to see Piers take a step in his direction. He had no time to react before Piers was up in his personal space, locking their gaze one more time. Every nerve in Leon’s body was suddenly alight, all hairs standing on end.

But it only lasted a moment. Piers searched his face for something, what that would be he had no idea, before pushing past him towards the doorway where Marnie was. He breathed out all the air he had sucked into his lungs, not realizing he had been holding it in, and turned to watch the other man walk away.

A hand reached up to run through his hair as he relaxed, but a new frown formed on his face when he fully turned to look at Piers. He was… limping? It was incredibly subtle, something people normally wouldn’t have noticed had they not spend as much time as he had in medical facilities, but it was definitely there. And it seemed, in an even subtler way, that it was being downplayed.

He decided he would ask him about it later, when he felt that he wouldn’t be ripped apart for posing the question, and let the matter slide for now. There were too many things to learn, and trying to tackle it all at once would only leave him strung out. Leon gently slapped his cheeks, standing up straighter with new determination. That’s right, he would have to take this one step at a time, but he wasn’t going to back down. He was going to make sure that Piers got the treatment and care he needed, even if some of that meant breaking down a few walls.

Of course, if Piers would even let him break down those walls. There were lots of things they were going to have to learn about each other, as Leon wasn’t all sunshine and rainbows either. This was going to be the biggest challenge he had faced yet, but for now, he let it go. No point in stressing himself out about it yet, they had only just met.

So he made his way over to where Marnie had come in with groceries, putting that smile back on his face. There was not much to be done about it right now, so better to do what he does best, and go with the flow. They had plenty of time to figure each other out, to learn more about each other and maybe break down a few walls. After all, tomorrow was another day, and there would be plenty more days after that. Yea, he could do this.


	3. Getting to Know You a Little More

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In which we discover Piers does not know how making friend's work.

If Piers could go back in time, to before he had grown ill, there are so many things he would change. Mainly, he would have done a lot more for his sister, would have put that smile on her face more. So seeing her smiling now, laughing so easily as Leon apologizes profusely for bumping into her whereas she hardly laughed before. Leon does it so simply, he is extremely light-hearted, and his carefree nature is contagious, it’s hard not to let it rub off on himself.

“What do you think?” Marnie snaps him out of his self-deprecative spiral, but he was very obviously not listening, and it caused a frown to form on her face. _Dammit, you showed too much_.

“Sorry, what were we talkin’ about?” he asked, forcing a smile that convinced no one. He was exhausted, ever since he had moved out here he had hardly been sleeping. This move was supposed to be relaxing for him, but the action of moving itself had still been a rather stark change, and he was having more trouble adjusting than he’d like to admit.

“We were discussing what we wanted to have for dinner,” Leon supplied, and Piers’ brows twitched into a furrow. Marnie had already come to like him, but Piers couldn’t be convinced so easily. It would take a lot more than a goofy contagious attitude to gain his trust. 

“Sorry.” he said again, widening his fake smile in the hopes of being a little more convincing, “M’not very hungry.”

This time it was Leon’s turn to frown, and it made Piers shift in his spot. He hated the way Leon looked at him like that. Honestly, he would prefer more if Leon actually was disappointed in him, that would be a lot easier to handle than when he looks at him with such concern. Piers doesn’t deserve that kind of worry.

“You didn’t eat anything this morning, and you hardly ate anything for lunch.” _Why are you so worried about me, you hardly know me_.

“Yeah, c’mon Piers. I’ll even help Leon cook, so please eat somethin’.” Now he was in for it, he could never say no to his sister, no matter how differently he felt. She was the only person he could never be angry with for being concerned for him, but he always felt awful for causing her so much worry. She should be spending her youth out with her friends, instead of spending all of her teenage years worrying over her sick older brother. He really was a burden on her, wasn’t he. 

“A’ight…” Piers sighed, giving in, “but let’s make somethin’ everyone is in the mood for, not jus’ me.”

* * *

Marnie seemed to relax hearing this, but Leon wasn’t quite so convinced. He was still looking at him in concern, and it almost made Piers feel like he was looking too deeply, seeing things that Piers did his best to keep hidden. He _really_ hated that look. 

Every night after dinner, Piers goes up to his room to work on song lyrics he’ll never get to sing. And every night he looks at his guitar, only to tear his eyes away. Playing it would only further his depression. He needed time, time to accept the fact that his music career was over, time to accept that he would never be on stage again.

The majority of his instruments had been placed in storage, in fact his acoustic was the only instrument he had been allowed to bring to the cottage. Marnie had sensed his distress over it, and used her allowance to buy him a brand new lyric book, as his old one had just been filled before he got sick, and he became too depressed to buy a new one. It was a cute little book with a skunk pattern on the cover, which she had said caught her attention because it reminded her of his hair, the same thing she says every time she sees anything with a skunk on it. He was resigned to his skunky fate.

Tonight, however, just like the past few nights since he got here, he was having trouble. The lyrics just weren’t flowing like they used to, which came at no surprise to Piers. Even so, the block was incredibly frustrating, and he pushed the notebook away while simultaneously leaning back in the chair. A hand reached up to push his bangs up and out of his face, rubbing the bridge of his nose as it came down. He was getting nowhere with this, and all he was gaining out of it was a horrid migraine.

A knock on the door alerted him of someone’s presence, but he made no move to look their direction, “you should’ave gone home by now, Marnie.”

“Actually…” The low male voice that graced his ears shocked him, and he spun just slightly in his desk chair to see Leon standing in the doorway. “It’s um… just me. Sorry to disappoint.”

Piers couldn’t ignore the dejected look on the other man’s face, he looked too much like a kicked puppy, so he signed and swung all the way around the face him fully. “No, s’alright, come on in.”

He watched as Leon’s body physically un-tensed, and he waltzed right in, plopping down onto Piers’ bed. _So much for personal space._

“Is there something you need?” Piers spat unintentionally, and he cursed himself at the way Leon winced.

“I saw you form the hallway as I was walking to my room,” he admitted sheepishly. “You looked like you were having trouble, so I thought you could use a break from whatever you were doing. I was going to ask if you wanted me to make you a cup of tea. What were you focusing so hard on anyway..?”

Piers pushed the notebook further up behind him on the desk and away from curious eyes, “nothin’ important! A cup of tea sounds brilliant, let’s move downstairs?”

Leon looks for a moment as if he wants to ask more, but shakes his head, and instead nods them towards the door.

* * *

Piers, currently spread out on the couch, for once in his life was at an absolutely loss for words. He could handle letting Leon do the cooking, he absolutely hated doing it, but when he told him he could handle making his own tea, Leon shushed him,  _ shushed him _ ! And somehow he had managed to convince him to lay on the couch while he handled the tea. He was absolutely stunned at the fact that somehow, he has listened. 

So there he sat, absolutely astonished, until he heard the faintest sign of humming. It grew louder, slowly, until Leon was singing some song he didn’t know horribly off-key while working on their tea. Piers couldn’t help but laugh, which by no means went unnoticed by Leon, who only began to sing much worse. When the tea kettle started to whine on the stove, he held out whatever note he had been singing in time with it, singing higher and higher until his voice gave out, and all that came out was air. By the time he had turned off the stove and removed the kettle, Piers was wiping away tears.

“Mate, if this had been a competition, you definitely would have just won the award for bein’ tone-deft.” 

Leon was completely unbothered by the insult, and instead went about finishing up their drinks and bringing Piers his mug, “I’ve never much been one for singing, still doesn’t mean it’s any less fun.”

Piers calmed a bit at that, although somehow, he felt just that much lighter. “Yeah, it doesn’t matter how good you are at it, anyone can sing if they want to.”

Leon took a seat on the couch next to Piers, maintaining some distance which Piers was thankful for, “have you always been a musician?”

Several memories flashed through his mind at once, but instead he chose the safest answer amongst all of them. “Yeah, since Marnie was just a girl. She’s always been the one who encouraged my music, I never would’ave gotten as far as I did without her.” 

Leon was silent for just a moment, but when he finally did speak, it came out softer than anything Leon had said to him before. “You say that as if you’re never going to get to play again.”

Piers whipped his head around to give Leon a look of _are you kidding me,_ but Leon just looked across the room, sipping at his tea. “Look at me, mate. I’ve gotten so sick that I can’t even care for myself, I ‘ave to get you to do it for me. I don’t think I’ll be getting back up on a stage any time soon.”

“Who said you’re going to be sick forever.” The look on Leon’s face was completely unreadable, a skill that Piers normally prided himself in, but he knew he had lost the argument when Leon turned to face him. His smile was bright enough to rival the sunlight itself, and Piers would dare look away from those beautiful golden eyes, he couldn’t. “No one ever said your illness was incurable. I think… that you will be back up on stage. Music is what you were meant to do, there’s no way it's gone forever. You should have a bit of faith Piers. Although, I know that won’t come easy, so until you can, I’ll have faith for the both of us.”

Hearing his name spoken that way—hearing Leon speak with such confidence, stirred something within him, something he really couldn’t understand, and all he could do was look away. He knew Leon was still looking at him, but he couldn’t bring himself to speak.

After a few moments of silence, Leon spoke up again. “Listen, about that conversation we had on the first day-”

“I suppose it’s not so bad,” Piers interjects, and he took some pride in the fact that this time when he looked back up Leon was the one caught off guard. “Suppose it’s not so bad being a little friendly. Jus’ don’t expect me to treat you much differently. I’m… m’not so good at all this friendly stuff.”

The smile he was graced with was ten times brighter than the lamp sitting behind Leon’s head. He was going to go blind at this rate. “That’s alright! I’m not expecting you to treat me any differently. In fact, I’d much prefer you continue being yourself. You aren’t really friends if someone puts on a fake persona around you, and since you're my friend you shouldn’t feel the need to do that, and-”

Leon continued down his rant, but Piers’ brain was short circuiting, slow down! All he had said was he didn’t mind being friendly, but Leon had already moved to calling him his friend! That was so much faster than his mind could keep up with.

Sensing Piers’ slight discomfort, Leon stopped his rambling in its tracks and leaned forward into his personal space. “Are you alright?”

Piers on the other hand, whose face was sure to be bright red by this point, jumped up from his seat. “Huh? Oh, yeah, m’totally fine, just great! Although I’m getting a bit tired now, yeah, I should probably head off to sleep! Thanks fer the tea, it was great!” He hurried off and out of the room before Leon could protest, leaving his half full mug that was sure to not go unnoticed, and ran off to his room.

Once he reached it he leaned against the closed door behind him.  _ Calm down! All he did was call you his friend. You’re an adult, you shouldn’t be so worked up over something as simple as this! _

Still, he hardly has anyone he could call a friend, besides Marnie… this was a big deal! Did Leon actually mean it? Or was he just being nice? God, he wasn’t getting anywhere with this. He moved away from the door to sit at the desk, staring at the little skunk notebook and thinking about it for just a moment, before pushing it away from him. The best thing to do right now would be to do as he told Leon, and go to bed. He would have a much fresher mind in the morning.

* * *

“Is he alright?” Marnie asked, watching as Piers walked into a wall and then glare at it as if he could scare it into moving out of his way, before walking over to sit on the couch.

“Apparently, he got no sleep last night,” Leon sighed, before running over to stop Piers from drinking out of the mug of tea he had left the night before. That was his fault for not picking it up. 

**Author's Note:**

> I'm starting out uploading the first two chapters, as chapter one is just the prelude, but from here on I'll be updating one chapter at a time!


End file.
